Excerpted from Zingerman’s Guide to Good Leading, Part 2: A Lapsed Anarchist’s Approach to Being a Better Leader It’s an interesting construct, one that seems like it should be a no-brainer, but I think is actually oddly alien to the way most of us are raised, and certainly the way most workplaces work; to make […]

I added this one to the list fairly recently. It’s not that having fun is a novel idea—here at Zingerman’s we’ve had it written into our guiding principles for years. But we long ago realized that fun was something we had to actively make happen, not something that would arrive on its own. Note that […]

Early on in our work together Paul taught me that, in his view, “Professionalism means sticking with something long after the glamour has worn off.” Everything I’ve seen, heard, and learned since has supported that belief. While most people seem to think that everyone else’s work or life or whatever is glamorous, few things are […]

It took me a really long time to recognize the truth of this law. But having realized the reality of it I can’t recall a single time that it hasn’t proven true. I can tell you, too, that accepting it has radically reduced my stress level. I used to think there was this big conflict […]

Although most of us are raised with the belief that effective work eliminates problems, the reality is quite different. We’re always going to have problems. The key is to pick the problems you want and then appreciate the chance to work on them, all the while working to get better problems still. Don’t believe me? […]

The most successful organizations and individuals understand this. From medicine to the arts, non-profits, or pro sports—the best in any field are all going after improvement all the time. You can call it continuous improvement, kaizen, or whatever you like. The reality is that if we’re not learning, growing, and improving then the marketplace is […]